president obama, 30 minutes away on meeting what went wrong to allow a bombing attempt on christmas day. he will be announcing new rules to protect passengers but who will end up paying for all this extra security? >> fighting back against bank of america. a california lawyer says he is fed up with fees and is threatening to sue the bank. a new survey smooes people aren't happy with their jobs. of course, people who can't find employment aren't happy either. but will there be more jobs in 2010? a big unveiling. new technology that could change the way you watch and own movies and television shows. >> "it's the economy" on msnbc. we begin with breaking news. following this out of california. flights are suspended in and out of bakersfield airport after discovery of hazardous material. found in a checked bag. now, tsa employees found some kind of chemical ear at that point reportedly in a sports boughtal that was packed away in

luggage. airport officials say it doesn't appear to be terrorism related but they haven't yet identified exactly what that chemical is. two tsa workers have been overcome by fumes. they were treated at the hospital and released. right now police are questioning the owner of that bag. we will bring you more on this story as details come into the newsroom. in a- hour, the president convene as high-level meeting with the men and women that control u.s. security and the flow of intelligence p. >> directly after he will address the breakdown that leads to the -- led to the christmas day plot and steps to assure that it doesn't happen again. of course, we also know the president, as we said, has this high-level meeting. it has been happen being 2:30 with what they are calling his national security team secretary of state, defense, attorney general, large group of people. they are all going to be essentially giving their reviews to the president. >> we understand that this is the first time they are going to be all sitting down and talking after this incident that happened on christmas. it is first time they are all getting together to talk about the situation. we are expecting changes to the

watch list system. you know, that's -- basically what we are expecting for this meeting. right now nbc news white house correspondent savannah guthrie joins us with more. what do you think will happen at this meeting? >> look, it is an b an hour and a half meeting where every agency head will be able to give to the president face to face the results of their reviews of what went wrong at their individual agencies. a lot of this is something that the president has already seen. he got the last agency's review from the cia yesterday. they were a little bit late because of what happened in afghanistan last week where seven cia agents were killed in the line of duty. in any event he has essentially the contours of what happened. it is part in after-action report and a chance for the president to hear from the agency heads where they think the improvements can be made. after this we will hear from the president himself. he will make a short speech. probably less than ten minutes where he will lay out the reforms and a timeline for some security changes he wants to make. i don't think that we are going

hear new ground broken in terms of what the president wants to do today. specifically. he may also update the american people about this review, about what it is that they found went wrong on that christmas day attempted attack. >> is a have an a what can we expect in terms of tone from the president today? there were a lot of critics coming out after he spoke for the first time after the botched attack and people thought some of the critics were saying that he was too posed almost and then came out and spoke more strongly. do we expect more of that today n. >> i think so. maybe a mixed bag. i think the difference between the first statement in hawaii and second statement was really striking. because the first statement was so straightforward and by the -- the next day when the president had really learned the full scope of what was missed in terms of intelligence signals, he seemed to be simmering right before the cameras. obviously some time passed and he's still -- of course, extremely upset with what's

happened here. and as the spokesman, robert gibbs, said a few minutes ago, this is not going to be an occasion where the president sits across from the agency heads and listens to them point fingers at one another saying it is the other guy's fall. i think we will hear a president stern president obama and somebody that wants to make clear to the american people he's on this case and whether it needs to be changes and he will make sure there are those changes made. >> savannah guthrie at the white house. thank you. getting ahead of the terrorists the president will detail the latest measures after his meeting today, including expansion of that terror watch list. >> extra security, of course, means extra costs. so who will pay? already struggling airlines? or the american taxpayer again? right now, even as screening tightens across the globe there is questions about the effectiveness of new strategies. >> i think you have to respond to threats that have actually happened. and even while you are thinking about new ways. >> time and again we have seen that when we build a better mousetrap, the terrorists build a better mouse.

>> let's bring in the senior business correspondent for "the new york times." what do you think we are talking about here in terms of new measures and, i mean, maybe even more importantly, what could it cost? >> it can cost a lot of money. the tsa has a budget now of about $7.5 billion. and that's actually up from what it had last year. the obama administration put money for tsa into the stimulus package and asked congress for more money this year. if we are talking about putting the body screening machines into every single airport, they cost about $150,000 each. that's going to eat up money very quickly. >> yeah. i mean, no only that, are we already seeing an impact? i was expecting on to see longer lines after christmas. between didn't see it yet. is that on its way? what's that mean for airlines already struggling? >> what the tsa said over the holidays they want it to be unpredictable and you are not going to see the same thing in philadelphia and sioux city.

you may get stronger security in sioux city than do you in a big city like detroit. what we could be see sing maybe more predictable security because the airlines are a bit upset you can't predict what the pa passenger is going to experience. how can they sell a safe and easy trip if the easy part isn't there? >> one of your reports you talk about talking to an executive in the airline industry who says that his thought was that people don't book away from travel. they don't look away from travel because of inconsistencies -- hassles and not knowing, do i need to be there three hours or will i miss my flight? >> that's right. i think -- at least the airlines get a bit of break because we don't have a heavy travel season now. it won't pick up again until presidents' day and then again over spring break and easter. i think they would like to see standards from the government that makes sense and they can explain to their passengers. in an airport you are not going to go up to the tsa agent and complain to them because they

could arrest you. you will go to the gate agent or passenger service agent at the airlines. >> you know, the other thing that i heard, one airline industry insider talking about the fact that with these body scanners, they are so expensive and $1150,000 to $200,000. if the cost of this gets passed to the airlines and ultimately to the passengers, this person was saying we just can't afford it. our profit margins are so slim as it is now and we need to make the money. my thought was that's very short-sided because if you do have another attack, god forbid, you are really going to see a decline in your travel. >> that's true. >> that's true. first of all, security is paid by the government. it is paid by the fax pair and also paid in ticket taxes. we pay fees. if you look at all that fine print on your ticket, there's a fee in there for security. that could be what goes up. so we, the american traveler, could end up paying more for this. on the other hand, if you or i

have any doubts at all or if we think it just isn't worth to it fly from chicago to minneapolis, i will drive instead, then that hurts the airlines very much. >> paid for by the government means paid for by us because that's taxpayers that fund the government. thank you so much for joining us today. we appreciate it. >> my pleasure. $1 billion, that's the money continental airlines lost since. a ceo who cuts his own salary, that's priceless. the new head of continental says that he's giving up $730,000. that's his paycheck for the year. until the company makes a full-year profit. the executive that took over january 1 also says he will not ask other employees to reduce their pay. let's take a look at business headlines. the housing market suffered a severe setback in november. potential buyers took a breather after learning the first time home buyer tax credit would be extended. home sales plunged 16%. that was way below the 2%

analysts were expecting. factory orders were higher than expected. a sign businesses are restocking and ordering new stuff. that's generally the first step if an economic recovery. take a luc at how the market is trieding. down close to below the session now. dow jones industrial down better than 40 points. s&p 500 is flat on the session. nasdaq trading lower as well. hair tows the johnson & johnson fortune is found dead in her california home. the latest in the investigation to her death. the man suing bank of america and what he says are sky-high krartd fees. in this troubled economy, how do you know which banks to trust? valuable advice later on "it's the economy." old hits your whole body. alka-seltzer plus liquid gels rush relief everywhere you need it. it's the most complete relief you can get in a liquid gel, so you feel better, fast. alka-seltzer plus liquid gels.

have come home to custom roasted maxwell house. really great flavor. i love the taste. hmmm. hmmm. smooth. rich. fabulous. is it "hmmm?" hmmm. (announcer) taste why maxwell house is good to the last drop. if you choose a sauce based only on the label, you might be missing something. with prego, it's all about the sauce. in a blind taste test, more people preferred prego over bertolli. the sweet and savory taste of prego. it's in there.

we continue to follow breaking news out of california.

you are looking at pictures from bakersfield airport. it has been shut down temporarily. flights are suspended in and out of that airport. this after the scotchry of hazardous material in a checked bag. tsa employees found this hazardous material. it was a chemical in a sports bottle. they were overcome by the fumes and had to be taken to be checked. we believe they are all right. let's go to misty reid for more on this. first to the status of the tsa employees. are they okay? >> reporter: they seem to be fine. they were taken to the hospital for treatment. and for monitoring. we haven't heard back on their actual conditions as of yet. >> what more do we know about what happened here? what was this chemical? how did they find it? >> the actual -- law enforcement won't release what the substance that was found in the luggage. 7:30 this morning. two tsa attendants were checking the bags and were swabbing them. and they -- actually became overcome with nausea.

and at that point the person that owned the bag, a man was detained, and he is being held. they haven't released details on who he is or what is inside the actual container that they found. >> any information as to the passenger? has he been cooperative? does he have a plausible explanation? are they concerned? >> they have not released that information. the bomb squad is out there trying to figure out if the chemical is hazardous. and they are trying to figure out what that is and they are trying to remove it from the airport at this point. he's being detained. we are not sure if he has been cooperative or what -- what information he's given on the contents of that container. >> all right. right now flights still suspended, right? >> absolutely, yes. >> thank you, misty. with this interest rate going up and credit card limb i going down, a california lawyer is going to war with bank of

america. san diego attorney ben pavoney put the binge on alert and refused to pay his credit card bill until the bank lowers his interest rate. >> wait. there's more. did we mention he's a lawyer? he says the bank tries to mess with him credit score, he says go ahead. he will just sue them. ben pavoney joins with us more on this. have you heard from bank of america? are they concerned? >> they have not contacted me. >> what makes you think have you the grounds for a lawsuit here? it sounds like -- i understand they raised your rate to 27.99% which certainly sounds usury. a low of people have that story. why do you think have you the right to sue them? >> well, i would only be suing them in response. if they mark credit and decrease my credit score it would be my contention we bailed you out when things -- when you needed our money. and you can can't go around then basically collecting money from the government at 1% and then charging 28%. mine, that's a ridiculous spread.

completely extortion. and somebody has to take a stand. >> are you more upset that they cut your limit? apparently your debt was somewhere around -- owe about $30,000. you said you hit a cash krunch and gone to them to ask them to raise the credit limit. then they came back and said no not only are we not going raise it, we will lower it below what you have now. is that what you are more upset about? or is it the interest rate, the 27.99? >> both of them are legitimate wrongs. two parties to a contract, mine, i'm in a contract with bank of america. and we are supposed to be partners. in those kind of contracts each party has an obligation of good faith. while the bank says i understand you need money but we are here to tell you we don't want to give it but we want to cut you right down to your balance level and hopefully get penalties and charges, there is an element of bad faith there especially because the bank's choices are no better than the citizenry at

large's choices in the economic downturn. >> i understand that you have refused to pay your bill until the bank lowers your interest rate. it seems kind of clear how this is going to play out. you are not going to pay them so then fees are -- and interest will accumulate over time. what are you going to do at that point? >> well, again, once they mark my credit that will be a serious wrong i go to court and contend that they broke the contract first by acting in bad faith, by engaging in basically profit tearing at the ex-pension of the citizenry. and, you know, hopefully that will resonate with a jury. >> i'm wonder when they increased your rate was this something already in your agreement with the bank? was this one of those new additional fees they have come out with where they send you the mailing and the rate goes up rather quickly? >> you they, trying to track interest rates with the credit card is an interesting experiment. my credit rate was about the same for many years. and then i just noticed one day

that it had been up in the 28% range, you know. it is just -- it is just too high considering what their borrowing it at. >> is there any other option have you seen out there in terms of shift thing to another card or borrowing from someone that paid it off? do you have any other backup plan? >> yeah. mine, you know, in the course of my practice, the debt will get paid off either way. but i -- you know, there's just a wrong, i think, that not all people are in a position to really do something about it. in my case i'm in a position to do something about it and i have the gotten a lot of support for that idea and upset people. so, you know, maybe something will get done. >> you will probably get elected to office or something. thanks for coming on and sharing your story. i you this there are a lot of people out there watching that are in the same position and would like to do something to fight back. anyway, you are probably their new hero. thanks for joining us. >> thank you. if you are fed up with your current banking situation, how do you know which bank is right

for you? you have more choices now than ever from the community banks to major chains, even online only banks. >> msnbc financial analyst vera gibbons is here tore sort it all out. first of all, i want to comment on that last guest. i think i know what happened to him. it sounds to me like the bank, bank of america, switched him from a fixed rate card to variable rate card. we are seeing a lot of that happen. they have to send out notice alerting you to the changes. chances are he didn't open the mail from bank of america. this is happening everywhere. they are switching you from fixed to variable because with the new credit card laws go into effect -- they won't be able to raise rates on a whim. that's what it looks like they have done to him. it is happening everywhere. >> is there anything you can do about that, that situation? it sounds like you are familiar with that. >> you can't do much about it. tomorrow thing you can do -- you are in a nonnegotiable position here, you can opt out but that means they will close your account altogether and your

credit score takes hate. i don't think finding a fixed rate card in this environment is that easy. you are seeing more variable mark oats the card than fix. >> what's your better option? i'm wondering, i -- i live in new york city. i always banked at the big banks. even in my neighborhood there are smaller banks and popped up. i see people in there. >> they are a lot healthier, too, at this point. they are the ones doing well in the economy. >> that's true but did make over 1.4 trillion in bad loans during the credit borrowing bubble and imposing more fees on consumers. those fees now account for over 50% of their income. 15 years ago more like 35%. people are fed up with the fees and taking their banking elsewhere. they are finding satisfaction at credit unions. over 90 million americans now belong to a credit union membership up 11% in the last quarter alone. >> i have to tell you, i had more good experiences with credit unions than bad. but we just went through one

experience of fraud, fraudulent charge, when i had fraudulent charges on american express, major card, it has been no problem. they contact me and wipe it off. with the credit union it was a big problem. even after they found out that it was a fraud, we spent months going back and forth and still wanted to charge us for the late fees even when we explained it was a fraudulent charge. then didn't seem as organized. >> some of the smaller ones don't have it down the way the larger more established ones do. if you were going to bank at a credit union and more established ones to find one in your neighborhood, you can go to see youlookup.com and the nice thing about the credit unions is not only are they kinder and gentler, customer experience better, here's the thing, you actually stand a better chance of getting a loan at a credit union than do you at a bank. the bank loan portfolios are shrinking. you do stand a better chance of getting a loan. of course, you get better rates

on deposits and better rates on loans because that's how they operate. it is all about their members. any profits they make go back to the members in terms of better rates. >> yeah. for people at home that may not know what is a credit union? what makes it different from a regular bank? >> you have to have some sort of common bond with the other members. you have to be in the same community, lot of the credit unions are community based these days. they are pretty easy to find. membership has become much less restrictive and more accessible than it has in the past years. that's why so many people are joining. large percentage of them remember credit unions. if you are part after teachers group or part of an employer group or whatever, then you can join. you have to have some sort of common bond with the other members. >> vera gibbons, thanks so much. much of the country in a deep freeze right now. it has been so cold. how long can we expect this cold snap to last? >> soon it will be something new to watch in your -- on your liveling room i tv. [ male announcer ] prilosec otc.

knock heartburn... into a whole new zip code. 24/7. satisfaction guaranteed. thataboy. [ male announcer ] prilosec otc. heartburn gone. power on. prilosec otc. dominates heartburn. 24/7. including the eight hours you spend with your eyes closed. prilosec otc. heartburn gone. power on.

if you feel fraud or identity theft only happens to other people, then don't bother watching this commercial. i've taken precautions all my life to protect my identity. i've been in law enforcement all my life... and my identity was stolen. did you know that identity theft has topped... the federal trade commission's list of consumer complaints... for the last eight years? it's a serious problem with anyone with a social security number. and it continues to get worse. fact is, on your own, there are many things... you can do to deter identity theft. protect your social security number, shred and destroy, be internet savvy, use intricate passwords, safeguard your purse and wallet. seriously, are you really going to do all that? no, really are you going to do all that... for you and your family? at lifelock, the gold standard in identity theft protection, we're here to help. we take proactive steps to deter identity theft... to help stop it before it happens. lifelock identity theft protection can be yours... for just ten dollars a month. call now. when you are a victim of identity theft, from that point your whole entire life...

is spent trying to protect your identity. and i say "trying" because it's a full-time job... just trying to protect your identity. if your identity is stolen, nothing can be... more frustrating or more time-consuming... than cleaning up afterwards. at lifelock, all we do is think of ways to help protect your identity. and if you do become a victim of identity theft while a member of lifelock... because of a failure in our service, we help you fix it and work toward restoring your good name. it's part of our one million dollar total service guarantee. this peace of mind comes included with your... ten-dollar-a-month lifelock membership. sign up now and we'll send you a paper shredder... to help keep your identity even safer. for lifelock peace of mind at just ten dollars a month, and to receive your paper shredder, call now and mention "shredder." call now and mention "shredder." call now or visit lifelock.com.

chances not telling you anything you don't know. most of the country is feeling the frigid effects of a cold snap. central arkansas kids got an extra day of winter break. it was the second in two weeks for an area that rarely gets snow. sarasota a florida a white and cold wedding for jerrod and ashley hewett. she's brave. >> she's like i bought this dress. i'm taking these pictures. i don't care. >> their planned beach wedding took place in 40-degree weather with a fierce windchill. in missouri, folks are going to have to brave the below freezing temperatures straight through next week. let's check in with the weather channel's vivian brown in atlanta. vivian, how's the weather where you are? >> it is very cold now. and guess what. it is going to get even colder for places over the deep south. let alone the upper midwest. let's show you what i'm talking about. here's a look at the afternoon

highs we had yesterday and how they are different from what's average this time of year. you can see we are compared to average, good 15 to 20 degrees below average, we saw yesterday. that's just the tip of the iceberg. because as we head towards the end of the week, we are talking about the reinforcing cold air and i will tell you what. this -- by this time the end of the week, we are talking about temperatures not just 15 to 20 degrees below average but 25 to 30 degrees below average. so if you thought you had been cold, oh, you better prepare because it is going to get even colder as you can see progressing towards the end of the week. even places like atlanta. not getting above freezing by friday afternoon and we are forecasting a high of 28 and that's 24 degrees below average. so it is cold now. but definitely expect it to get even colder. >> oh, vivian. thanks, i think. >> not sure. >> another player about an hour

ago. google unveiled the nexus i. similar to motorola's droid. google is making it available for use with any cell phone carrier. if you choose t-mobile the phone will only cost you $180. soon you may not be able to come there is nothing on tv thanks to skype. you will be able to talk to your friends and family from your family living room. skype, free online calling service, joining forces with panasonic and lg to offer free live video chats and phone calls via internet connected high definition televisions. all you need is an extra web cam and make row phone accessory and you can see your relatives so much more than you ever wanted. >> it is like the jetsons. you have to get dressed for a phone call. this presents a lot more problems than it solves. >> shove your toddler in front of the tv every time and show them. >> that's right. in front of the web cam and

hide. >> i don't like the sound of it. we will be right back. ♪ walgreens invites you to stay well this new year. ♪ with the centers for disease control and prevention saying... that vaccination is still your best protection, walgreens and take care clinics... now offer h1n1 flu vaccinations... every day at our more than 7000 locations nationwide... for just $18.00. so stop in today. walgreens. there's a way to stay well.

transform drinks you want, into cold medicine you need. introducing fast crystal packs. a new way from alka-seltzer plus to... get cold and flu relief in a taste-free, fizz-free powder. alka-seltzer plus. when it comes to italian sauce, some people prefer this jar. but more people prefer this sauce. winner of the blind taste test. the sweet and savory taste of prego. it's in there.

a new government study shows that health care slowed in 2008. centers for medicare and medicaid services say spending totaled $2.3 trillion in 2008. that's a growth of only 4.4%. the slowest rate of increase since the cms began tracking spending in 1960. the government blames the recession for a lower number. house democrats are meeting now to talk about the next step in the health care reform effort. >> it seems they may be ready to forego the formal negotiation possible necessary order to come up with a final bill. but there are new calls to make those talks public. nbc's luke russert joins us from capitol hill. so, luke, we will talk about the c-spanish u in a moment. first, explain ping pong to us, if you will. >> reporter: well, a lot of us know ping pong is a great game that can be played well in a your 80s and 90s. but here up on capitol hill,

ping pong is actually a term used that when the house and senate send back ideas about legislation informally without convening the real conference committee. that's the formal process about which the two chambers come together to work on the bill. the reason why this is being done is because of a possible delay that could arise in the senate. in the senate there is a parliamentary procedure proet kolg that would allow for confer ees to be elected to this conference committee. that process can be filibustered and can be a lot of del nay it. in order to avoid that, much of what we saw in the senate for the last bill in december, democrats are using this ping pong idea to informally throw ideas back and forth before they pass a final health care reform bill which looks to be later this month or early february. >> luke, let me ask you about the c-spanish u. i wasn't aware there was anything that they didn't show on c-span. apparently c-span is lobbying to make health care negotiations open to cameras. it would be a ratings bonanza,

no doubt. where does this stand? has there been any response? >> it is interesting because barack obama on the campaign trail really was outspoken and said his administration would allow health care reform negotiations to be on c-span. obviously, that's not happened. democrats say republicans have shown no interest in being bipartisan. therefore, they do not have to be shown on tv or be brought into the tent. then they also say that the issue worked out within our own party and we don't need cameras there. however, c-span -- the c-span, brian lamb is sending a letter to leaders and democrats and republicans saying that he wants to broadcast these negotiations which originally would happen in conference committee. one democrat i spoke to said that definitely shocked them to a degree. they weren't expecting that. it is going to be interesting to see the press conference at 3:00 with steny hoyer and nancy pelosi. what their answer to the question is. democratic party that preached transparency when they came in '06. wonder if they will do it now.

>> that will be an interesting one to watch. thanks for joining us. >> take care, guys. thank you. number of americans filing for personal bankruptcy rose by nearly a third last year. that's 1.4 million people most of whom made the decision because of foreclosures or job loss. and for the first time many of those filing for bankruptcy were top earners. making $100,000 to $300,000 a year. some of the nation's top economists are expecting a gloomy next decade. >> some of the attendees said we could slip back into a recession. smart money senior markets editor russell perlman joins us now. russell, bleak news. certainly. if it turns out to be true. how likely sit we could slip back into another recession? >> another recession certainly like we have seen over the last year and a half is probably likely. would have to have a confluence of bad events over the next year. you would have to see the banking system completely fall apart.

another not just freezing up of complete -- credit crisis we saw in 2008. remake -- remick an appearance. you would have to see factory orders which we have actually seen improvement in businesses spending money. you have to see that kind of wiped out here for -- another recession at least in 2010. >> i know one of the people talking about this is my own personal favorite harvard professor feldstein who thought maybe if the stimulus went away or when it eases off we could slip into a recession. factory orders, you know, we saw a big improvement there. you know, china manufacturing, those are all the first signs when you see people order -- see businesses ordering and restocking. the next thing is employment, right? >> that's the hope. i mean we hope wages and employment would form. sometimes it takes months to years of a lag between the actual upticks and in factory orders and capital spending until you actually start seeing

people being rehired. we have seen seen glimpses of folks like caterpillar and other capital types of industries saying we are looking to rehire some of the folks that were laid off. clearly, i think that people's expectations are anchored here over how the economy has looked from 1982 all the way through 2005. really -- we didn't have that bad a problem and now i think people expect an immediate jump-back to those relatively heavy days. just not going to happen. we are not going to be in a recession most likely here. but we will plot along. >> speaking of plotting along, we do keep hearing and one of the main issues brought up this past weekend was the housing and commercial real estate, we need to see some robust improvement there and obviously it is not happening and doesn't appear to be happening any time soon. >> no, that won't happen. there's a lot of inventory of unsold and vauk real estate that has to be accounted for. also, you have seen lot of banks

withhold a lot of their potential foreclosure sales because they were hoping the real estate market would bounce back and i think their tolerance for holding on to those sales is waning here and that will be a continued damper on the residential real estate market. at the least, it is good for buyers if you can get a mortgage you can still get a good deal here important the next year or two when it comes to houses and apartments. >> if there is a small silver lining, then we will take that. russell perlman, thank you so much. to a developing story that we are following. an autopsy is planned today for casey johnson. she's the aires to the johnson & johnson fortune. she was found dead at her los angeles home monday morning. she's the daughter of new york jets owner woody johnson and great granddaughter of the founder of the pharmaceutical giant. she was just 30 years old. miguel almaguer has the latest from our burbank bureau. miguel, i guess the word was she died of natural causes. but toxicology tests, it looks like, are possible here.

>> looks like the coroner's office is trying to sort this out. an autopsy will be performed today on casey johnson. that along with the possible toxicology report down the line could give us more insight into the 30-year-old's shocking and untimely death. casey johnson was the aires to the johnson & johnson pharmaceutical fortune. her father, woody johnson, owns the new york jets. her family issuing a statement that said it is mourning its very tragic loss. casey johnson seemed to be trying the make a name for herself in hollywood. she had apparently become engaged to her girlfriend, reality star tila tequila. they posted an announcement on a website announcing that engagement. johnson who went to high school with socialite paris hilton said the stupist e mistake was turning down a spot on hilton's reality show "the simple life." a rather notorious party girl casey johnson was also a mom. in 2007 she adopted a girl from kaz stan and some say that became a source of tension

between casey and her family creating a rift between her and her parents. johnson also had a history of diabetes. the autopsy report -- the coroner's office will look into that as a possible factor in her death. u.s. automakers post their worst year more than three decades. we will have a live report on that. the man the secret service claims was the third person to crash the white house state dinner is saying he was than even there. in just 45 minutes a week at a weight watchers meeting you can get the life skills that put you in charge of your world and hungry and the online tools to help you face any situation. which means 'darn right you can go to the dinner party' and still loose weight. and learn how to keep it off. join for free now. sorry hungry, you're not invited. but you are, join for free today and change your life. weight watchers. stop dieting. start living.

just another person in a one-size-fits-all world. you're you. aarp understands that. that's why they endorse products from top companies... so people 50 plus can choose health coverage options... as unique as they are. call or visit aarphealthnow.com... for free information on a wide range of solutions... that let you select the coverage you want... and skip what you don't.

let's say you want to start your own business. a major medical plan could make it easy... to get those employer-like health benefits. you may want dental coverage, too. call now and find plans that include... three cleanings a year and long-term care plans... that help protect your retirement assets; for peace of mind down the road. maybe you're working part-time but you still want... prescription drug or vision discounts? call now for big savings on eye exams... and 30% savings on eye wear at national retailers. because you don't just want to see well, you want to look good, too. aarp is different because it's not an insurance company. they won't recommend plans, but will make... information available from leading companies... so you can make choices you feel good about. because no matter where you are in life, you deserve coverage that makes sense for you. so don't wait, now's the time to call. maybe you've decided to get in shape... and you want a fitness program? you can get discounts on health club memberships across the country.

so whether you work for yourself, you're employed, retired, or medicare-eligible, call now for free information. and get what you need to make health care decisions... that work for you. you don't even have to be an aarp member to call. all you have to do is be yourself. and, if you have any questions about medicare, call today and get your free copy of "medicare made clear," by unitedhealth educational publishing group. it will help you better understand all your choices. so don't wait. call today for your free guide. the automakers are reporting december and full-year sales figures today. it is not looking good for chrysler. >> chrysler group says sales for 2009 were the worst in 47 years. it says it sold just over 900,000 vehicles but not bad news for the rest of the industry necessarily. phil lebeau is here live from chicago and joins us with more.

some of the auto -- other auto makeders really well. >> yeah. huge day for ford and huge day for toyota as well. let's talk about ford. sales increasing 33% for the month of december. this caps a year where ford not only weathered the storm at the beginning of the year but really built momentum and as the year went on and as a result ford picked up market share this year and first full year gain of market share since 1995. this is a company that really has all things going in the right direction right now. particularly when you look at its marketing and its product lineup. as for toyota increase of 23%. that's a nice way to end the year after several months where sales were negative for toyota and this is a company that's trying to put behind its first annual loss, one that shocked a lot of people. for those two companies, some good news in december but still you are seeing weakness in this market. sales are still going to come in and have vufly 10.5 million for the year. that will make this the weakest year for auto sales in the u.s.

since 1928. a long ways from healthy. >> how much did cash for clunkers play in a role in this year's numbers? >> huge. it brought a lot of people back into the show rooms and goosed sales for july and for august. now we paid a little bit in the fall. what we are starting to see now, monica, is a base where we are building off of that base and in terms of consumer sentiment and consumer confidence is improving and that's why auto sales are gradually improve. >> ford is pulling ahead as the big winner. nchs the man accused of being the third white house gate crasher is denying he was even there. "the washington post" says a congressional source identifies the man as carlos allen, a d.c. party promoter. the secret service says allen got into the state dinner for india's prime minister because he was with the indian delegation but his name wasn't on the guest list. interestingly enough, allen has been photographed not at the dinner but wit michaele salahi.

many americans are lucky just to have a job. doesn't mean they like that job. just released is your vashgs 45% of people, like monica and myself, are thrilled to death with the job that they have. that's down from 48% last year and lowest level on record. among the top reasons workers aren't happy, their jobs are boring. we don't have that problem. low pay, no comment. rising health care premiums taking a big chunk of their paychecks. >> a lot of people are stuck. it is sad to see those numbers. >> lucky to have a job. as the recession takes hold, cutting anything they can just to save money. that means job cuts, close city offices and at least one state, shorter school year. >> the city of saying will save more than $1 million and could say it is thanks to divine intervention. members of one of the city's fastest growing church congregations pledged to donate

more than 100,000 volunteer hours the keep the city afloat. >> we are joined bypass tore of the church. thanks for joining us. tell us about this effort and what people are doing and how you got so many volunteers. >> well, just recently wrote a book called "do something." i'm sure have you that there. last year in 2009, our church committed 100,000 hours to our mayor. because of the budget deficit there were needs that wrap being met in the city. as you know a budget deficit is about a quality of life issue. so we went to the mayor and said what are the needs in the city that we can help. he gave us a book of all the volunteer opportunities. we went to work and pledged 100,000 over 12 months and did it in nine months. every three months we gave a report on all the social -- city agencies that we worked with and $1.6 million when the year was up what kind of jobs? >> we cleaned out trash from parks and planted trees and we painted playground equipment in parks. painted a rec center.

we volunteered and mentored kids. we visited elderly people. all the things the city does and we monetize it because every job and every volunteer service had a different value. every quarter we showed them how many hours, how many volunteers, what agencies we worked with and at the end of the nine months it was over 100,000 hours and continuing to serve our city. >> for people now -- it is fantastic work. obviously, people were excited. it sounds like about volunteering to have volunteered that many hours. people were into it. how do folks watching now who say you know what, my church group or my local group in town, we would love to do something like this. how can we help? how do you recommend they get involved? >> they can go get the book and do some and through the book -- >> hold it up for us. we will give you a big commercial. here it is. >> they can get the book, read the book. then in the book there are do something assignments every chapter. at the end of the book do

something challenge. we will send people to a website, dosomethingworld.org. on that website, there's -- a lot of resources. one which can lead a pastor to serve his mayor, seven steps on how to serve your own mayor. also, 25 very short videos, three, four minutes to instruct people on how to do the things we do. now, we want churches to -- and volunteers to give us their ideas as well so we can share it with other churches. we have a young lady that makes dolls and gives the dolls to the police. the police give the dolls to little kids when they take them out of homes when they have a domestic violence call. another person that recycles bottles and cans and takes the money and sponsors kids in third world countries. a guy that takes 250 volunteers to convalesceens homes every week. 60 people in the homes do not get a visitor 37. he takes people in to visit them. unlimited amount of ways we can serve other people. lot of times when people wake up every day, they -- what can god do for me?

what can i -- what can our community do for me? instead of thinking what can i do for my community and for god. once we start serving other people, realizing that there are resources we have that can bless other people and who have the need, realizing we can be the answer to someone's prayers. someone right now is praying for encouragement for enlightenment for job, for food and clothes and we have those things. we can be the answer to their prayers if we just make a commit many to do something, girls. >> doesn't necessarily mean spending your own money. spending your time. thank you for joining us. it is an inspirational story. we appreciate it. we were saying before you may recognize miles. he used to play for the san diego chargers as well. maybe you recognize him if you are from california. >> a great story. a lot of towns are dealing with budget defense sits in cities and this is a group that went out and actually did something about it as opposed to just donating money or being upset about it. they went out and gave their time and did things like eming the the trash.

>> genius. >> things the city needs done. there were members out earlier this year talking about how people know they need to give to charities. a lot of people don't have the cash. just the idea you give your time is great. disney unveils their new key chest technology that could receive luz igs the way you watch movies and television. >> you are watching "it's the economy." this is a honda pilot. and this is the chevy traverse. it has more cargo space than pilot. including the most space behind the third row. and traverse beats honda on highway gas mileage too. more fuel efficient and 30% more room. maybe traverse can carry that stuff too. the chevy traverse. america's best crossover. compare us to anyone and may the best car win. the meeting went great! they loved the presentation! judy, great job on the printing! i'm amanda. tom. james. nice job on the brochures and letterhead.

louis, keep up the good work with our shipments. it's -- it's peter. great job, everybody! that's a closet. you know what, guys? take the afternoon off! we can't. that is why i hired you. world's proudest boss. [ male announcer ] we understand. you can never have too much help. fedex office. we give you peace of mind. i have diabetes like a lot of us here, so we understand. compassion. patience. you'll find it anytime you call. our customers say we're number one. plus, they're grateful we're located in the us, where we also manufacture... the accu-chek aviva meters and test strips. americans caring for americans. that makes us proud. accu-chek customer care born in the usa.

okay. imagine this scenario. melissa and i liking how this sounds. kid is watching a dvd at home but you have to leave the house. just get in the car and let the kids continue watching that same movie on your iphone. >> or finish it by watching on video on demand at a friend's house, computer at the loy breast cancer. is it all a pipe dream? not if disney has its way. julia boorstin is in los angeles to explain. we are liking the sound of this. >> reporter: interest sounds cool, melissa. the technology is called key chest. disney is hoping it will

revolutionize the download business. different types of companies can decide to participate in key chest, like a cable company or apple's itunes or a movie studio. what happens is these companies agree that if they sign on to key chest you label to access all of the movies and tv shows you bought on their platform on all of the other participating platforms. so if you buy a movie, let's say on the itunes, you can then also log in and turn on your tv and turn on your time warner cable box. in time warner cable would pop up all of the movies you would purchase on itunes. it would help you access your entire library no matter where you are, assuming disney could get a companies to sign on. >> it sounds like -- there has to be a catch. would you have to pay more for the movie originally? i mean, if i personally have bought "cars" about five times which is what we just showed. they are making money off that. for the exchange, seems like they have to charge more up front. >> well, disney is saying that they are not planning on charging more. it would be up to every company

whether or not they would want to charge more. sony, they want to get in sony dreamworks, if the other studios decide to sign on, they can decide how much they want to charge for each of their digital files. the reason why disney says they wouldn't charge more is they want people to really buy digital copies. right now the digital download business is a tiny, tiny piece of the overall pie. in order for that to become popular the way dvds they need to make it easy and accessible. >> it is not just disney that's trying this. there is, as always, when the new technology comes out, there is a competing technology now. we have to wait to see who wins. it sounds like disney has the stronghold, though. >> well, disney would argue that they are not actually competing. there is another -- there's an organization called digital entertainment content ecosystem, i believe. that's -- a bunch of companies that have come together led by an executive from sony to create a standard for a type of file. disney does have an alternative competeding type of file that would be used but disney saying

its key chest technology is a verification technology that would be used for any type of files. disney saying it is complimentary and not competitive. >> jewel why boorstin, thanks so much for joining us. >> that's it for this edition of "it's the economy." >> david shuster and tamron hall pick things up next. michael steele shockingly admitting the gop may not be ready to take back power in 2010. that story coming up in our next hour. stay tuned. in just 45 minutes a week at a weight watchers meeting you can get the life skills that put you in charge of your world and hungry and the online tools to help you face any situation. which means 'darn right you can go to the dinner party' and still loose weight. and learn how to keep it off. join for free now. sorry hungry, you're not invited. but you are, join for free today and change your life. weight watchers. stop dieting. start living. who try to quit cold turkey will be unsuccessful.

if you haven't been able to quit smoking, you haven't failed, maybe your method of quitting has. but you can do it. you may just need the right tools. clinical guidelines recommend treatment and support to improve your chances of quitting smoking. why not get all the help you can? make a plan, get support, and talk to your doctor about prescription treatment options that can help you quit smoking. and to find out more, go to rethinkyourquit.com accidents can happen, but with liberty mutual's new car replacement, if your new car is totaled within the first year, we'll give you the money to buy a brand-new car. and with our accident forgiveness, an accident won't cause your price to go up when you renew. if you qualify, you could save an average of $345. these are just two of our valuable features available to all qualifying drivers. plus, those who switch to liberty mutual save an average of 20.6% over their prior policy.